Based On The Systemic Functional Linguistics Toki Text Discourse Analysis

The systemic functional linguistics has been more widely used in analysis on English text since it entered the domestic language academia in the1980s, while less used in analysis on Chinese text. This paper is an attempt to utilize it in analysis on Chinese text. The data to be analyzed are the "trap-setting" short message, which is meant "tricky" to fool people for humor. Its content typically consists of two parts, with the former serving as a "trap-setting" device and the latter as the key. From the perspectives of the systemic functional linguistics, it is to reveal its distinctive characteristics in situational context, transitivity system, personal pronoun, mood types, thematic structures and cohesive devices.This paper is divided into six parts:Introduction section reviews the research results of the SMS and the "trap-setting" short message. It also sets out the research topics of significance, describes the research methods and the resource corpus.Chapter Ⅰ provides an overview of the Halliday’s systemic functional linguistics as the theoretical framework. The views of language, hierarchy of the language system, three meta-functions of language, as well as the views of discourse, methods, goal and process of discourse analysis are illustrated.Chapter Ⅱ begins with the situational context of the "trap-setting" short messages, pointing out the multi-level nature of it. Except the scene of the objective external world in communication, the speaker creates the second tier of the scene which contains variation of register, which is just the "smile effect" of the "trap-setting" short message. According to the characteristics of the variation of register, the "trap-setting" short messages are classified as follows:the "trap-setting" short message on identity and the "trap-setting" short message on emotion.Chapter Ⅲ attempts to discuss the experiential function of the "trap-setting" short message by investigating the clause transitivity system and the lexical collocation. We find that the process types of the "trap-setting" short message include major mental process and material process which express the meanings of "narration" and "description", a few behavioral process and relational process, and few existential process. The verbal processes are mainly used in the end of the discourse to "shake a package". The lexical collocation also plays an important role in realizing the experiential function. Chapter IV analyzes the interpersonal function of the "trap-setting" short message. Utilizing the mental set of references of "you" and "I" in interpersonal communication, the speakers of the "trap-setting" short messages use "you" and "I" frequently in the texts to close to the listeners, confuse them and raise their psychological expect, so that pave the way and store power for the successful achievement of the "smile effect". The majorities of the mood types of clause are "narrative"Chapter V focuses on the analysis of the textual function of the "trap-setting" short message by investigating its thematic structure and cohesion devices. The thematic types of the "trap-setting" short messages are mainly unmarked simply themes using "you" and "I" as subjects, as well as a few multiple themes. The corresponding thematic progressions are mostly "parallel" and "continue" types. For the cohesion devices, we discuss the personal reference, lexical reiteration and lexical collocation, which all play an important role in getting through the former serving as a "trap-setting" device and the latter as the key.